Days after the announcement that Time Magazine named Facebook Chief Executive Officer Mark Zuckerberg their prestigious, notable and coveted “Person of the Year,” reports have arisen that Generation Y, the generation of Mark Zuckerberg, uses his program twice as much as they watch television and/or read local or national newspapers.
Generation Y is the demographic that is typically described as Americans born between 1975 and 2000 with a heavier statistical focus on the birth rates of 1982 through 1995. Also commonly known as the Echo Boomers, Millennial Generation, Millennials, Generation Net and Generation Next, a large majority of Generation Y are children born of the previous generation known as the baby boomers.
The report also showed that 81% of Generation Y users log into their Facebook accounts daily to check up on their friends, news, brands they “like”, upload pictures and videos, RSVP to events and for general communication purposes.
Overall, this study is not surprising to most. Facebook.com has an estimated value of almost 2 billion dollars so many would assume they have to have consistent and excessive traffic daily to their website.
Additionally, the reports speculate that while these young Americans may not be reading the content of standard newspapers, they are absorbing the information through other social media outlets such as content specific online blogs. This also should come as no surprise, because you probably did not know about the study because of the newspaper articles that published this report, but now you are reading it on this EDU In Review blog. Commentary on the study also noted that they believed Generation Y was more likely to have their opinions swayed by bloggers opinions and voices then by traditional journalists.
Generation Y study participants did report that over 40% of them watch television shows online through various website streaming and almost 30% engage in watching movies online.
The conclusion thus comes that social media is engulfing the communications realm, nationally and worldwide, and Generation Y is not only technically savvy and engaged, but committed to continuously evolving.